Fiesta time for Neptunus as Ford launches latest model

The Assignment

When leading marketing and communications agency Mansfields Design were challenged by Ford of Europe to come up with something “experiential and different” for the Media launch of the all-new Ford Fiesta range, they turned to Neptunus to supply a bespoke temporary structure to help turn the design team’s vision into reality.

Mansfields required a high-tech environment for Ford to demonstrate the next generation of its popular Fiesta range, the UK’s top-selling small car. The structure needed enough space for a high-tech presentation incorporating hospitality and meeting areas along with exhibiting space to showcase the new car and its ground-breaking technology. The launch of the all-new Ford Fiesta was the motor giant’s largest media event in 2017.

The Solution

Technicians from Neptunus took just two days to construct a 600 square metre exhibition venue in the grounds of the historic Castilla Termal Monastery of Valbuena Hotel and Spa in Castilla Y León where more than 600 media and VIP guests attended a series of seminars over a four-week period.

Neptunus’ Alure Globe temporary structure provided a blank canvas for the Mansfields Design team to create a dynamic and cutting-edge environment to show off the car and the all-new Fiesta’s numerous technological innovations.

Inside the temporary building, Mansfields created “immersion zones” each designed to highlight how our personalities as individuals are influenced by the reactions and perceptions experienced through the five main senses – sight, touch, hearing, taste and smell. The ‘Sensory Zones’ included ‘Talk Zones’ for guests to meet Fiesta engineers; a ‘Touch Tunnel’ where guests were taken on a journey in complete darkness through a maze of materials from the natural world, the man-made world and the new Ford Fiesta; and a ‘See 360’ room to demonstrate how the all-new Ford Fiesta can ‘see’ around itself – through a combination of front and rear cameras, front and rear radars and 12 ultrasonic sensors which can detect other vehicles and objects, including pedestrians.

The Challenge

Castilla Termal Monastery of Valbuena Hotel and Spa is a building steeped in history. The Ford event was staged in a magnificent walled garden with manicured lawns. An eight-strong team of Neptunus technicians took just two days to build the structure with much of the equipment being hoisted into the walled garden by crane to avoid damaging the landscape. The build crew also ensured that guests staying at the hotel were not inconvenienced during the construction process.

The Verdict

Mansfields Design Communications Director Paul Harrison said: “We understood that many journalists attending the event would want to talk to the Ford team in detail about the car, but rather than sitting them down for a conventional PowerPoint presentation, we decided to encourage more relaxed dialogue as an integral element in the experience area which we created inside the structure. Neptunus provided the perfect blank canvas environment where we were able to present our vision.”